Medicine Buddha Life Story

About Buddha

Gautama Buddha was born a prince of the powerful Sakya clan in northern India in 543 B.C. Cocooned in luxury during his youth, the “Three Great Sights” - the sight of a destitute man, a dead body, and an ascetic - shocked him into reflecting on man’s condition in the world. He renounced his wealth and family and became a seeker of the truth. After years of penance and meditation he gained enlightenment and came to be known as the Buddha or “The Enlightened One.” Buddha is believed to have given gifts of knowledge such as medicine as well as spiritual inspiration and guidance to his disciples.
The robes of the Buddha feature details of the life of Gautama on his path to becoming the Enlightened One. Representations of the “Three Great Sights”, episodes from the Jataka Tales, in which incarnations of the Buddha appear in animal form, and characters from Buddhist iconography, including demons and angels on clouds are seen. Crucial scenes from Buddha’s life such as his first sermon at Sarnath, where he shared his philosophy of the Eight Fold Path to salvation, are shown on the robes of the Medicine Buddha Life Story.